OVERVIEW BY ALAN CUTLER

STAGE ONE

I have now interviewed 25 inspirational industry leaders, from every industry sector who were either recognised by their staff through two awards: 

The Sunday Times ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ Survey

The Caterer’s ‘Best Companies to Work For in Hospitality’

or by their peers: HCIMA Fellows and Members. The one exception was the initial pilot interview I conducted with a leader who I personally know well and respect greatly. You will note from the list of interviewees that they come from every sector of our industry.

I have to say that I found the interviews extremely interesting and, even as someone who specialises in hospitality leadership, I have personally learnt a great deal from them. It has been fascinating to hear these exceptional leaders’ views on leadership and how they inspire their staff to drive forward their businesses.

The interviews followed a pre-determined structure – exploring the leaders’ perspectives on a number of generic and industry-specific leadership issues. Later this year we will be producing more detailed research analysis, which we will release to key industry players, such as yourself. However, I am sure that you will be interested in the following taster of some of the themes that emerged.

The interviewees’ own development as leaders. 

Most had spent their entire working lives in hospitality and had honed their leadership skills through experience as they progressed through their careers. Several mentioned how the catering industry offered opportunities for entrants to take up junior leadership positions whilst relatively young and inexperienced.

Most also explained how they had learnt by working with, and for, others who held leadership positions – some to be admired as role models; others who demonstrated how not to lead!

Many also learnt from mentors, either informally or through more structured mentoring programmes. As an industry-specific mentor myself, I wrote an article on the subject for the Caterer magazine last year.

Manager or Leader?

I asked the interviewees whether they thought that there was a difference between management and leadership. All agreed there was, with the consensus view being that management was principally focussed on control, processes and measurable results; whilst leadership involved having a vision and inspiring others to share ownership of it.

I asked them whether they saw themselves as leaders or managers. With one exception, they all felt that they held a leadership role, although several also felt that they had to apply a management function.

When asked whether the hospitality industry required greater management or leadership, now and in the future, most believed that there was a real need for greater leadership at all levels. Comments included:

“As an industry, we have great management. We are over-managed in places”

 

“Are we attracting sufficient talent and are we developing and preparing that talent to do the leadership job that is required? I suspect that we are not”

 

“There are too many people in our industry who think that they are leaders, but actually are managers”

What makes an effective leader?

Having a vision was seen by many as being the most important leadership quality, along with great communication skills, including an ability to listen.

 

Building relationships based on trust, consistency and transparency was also crucial.

 

Several also mentioned the importance of personal strengths, such as self-belief, humility and integrity.

Characteristics of the hospitality industry

I asked the interviewees, some of whom had exceptional levels of industry knowledge and experience, if there were any characteristics of their industry, now and in the future, that leaders should be aware of. The following thoughts were expressed by more than one of them:

The changing profile of industry employees. Over recent years there has been a significant increase in employment of staff from outside the UK, especially from the former Eastern Bloc countries – many of whom are better qualified and have a different work ethic than their British work colleagues.

Increasing customer expectations.  As customers have more disposable income and are faced with increasing variety and choice of suppliers, they have become more experienced, more discerning and have ever-greater expectations of the products and services they purchase.

Senior leadership positions held by non-specialists.  Over recent years, several large companies have recruited non-hospitality professionals into senior positions. The interviewees had mixed views on whether this was a detrimental trend. Some thought hospitality companies could be effectively led by those from outside the industry, who brought additional strengths and experiences – others thought a thorough understanding of the industry was a necessity.

Changes to the hotel sector.  More than one leader envisaged the hotel sector in the future being dominated, on the one hand, by budget hotels offering an attractive product at an affordable price and, on the other hand, by upmarket establishments offering a unique experience, at a price. If this trend materialises, the question is whether the small, independent hotel can survive.

The Silver Bullet

I asked the leaders what one piece of advice they would give to a young person entering our industry in a junior leadership position – the Silver Bullet. Several suggestions embraced the following themes:

• Be yourself. Do not try to be someone you are not. Believe in yourself
• Be sure that the industry is right for you. If not, leave it. If so, work hard and enjoy the benefits it affords you.
• Develop your team and be prepared to rely on them

Most of these inspirational leaders stressed the importance of recognising that, in such a people-centred industry, it is the front-line staff who make the difference and it was illuminating to hear about the methods they used to reinforce that point to their staff. Many of the interviewees stressed that:

Happy Staff mean Happy Customers mean Good Business

I hope that this brief overview gives you a feel for how fascinating and instructive it was to hear these 25 leaders’ personal perspectives on leadership. I have no doubt that our industry stands to benefit greatly from learning and applying the lessons of Stage I of The Hospitality Leadership Excellence Survey.

STAGE TWO

Stage Two focussed on three themes that were raised during the initial stage of the research:

THEME A - INCREASING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS

Is this the case?  There was an overwhelming view that customer expectations were increasing across the industry and this was seen as a positive thing. Customers have higher expectations and are much more 'tuned in' to what they can expect. Increasing competition in the sector has driven quality standards upwards and people have got used to expecting more.

What can leaders do to encourage their staff to give exceptional customer service?  Many practical examples of what can be done were identified by the interviewees, including training, constant communications, making people aware of what is expected etc. The overall message was one of culture - creating a working environment and organisational culture that is supportive of people, treats them fairly and encourages them to provide the best possible service. It was a case of making the organisation a good place to work in.

Does recruitment play a part?  All respondents outlined having an appropriate recruitment strategy as crucial - one based on hiring personality and attitude and then training skills and knowledge once the person is employed.

THEME B - THE PROFILE OF INDUSTRY STAFF

Are an increasing proportion of hospitality staff multi-cultural and transient?  All the respondents agreed that the profile of hospitality workers is, indeed, changing (especially with regard to there being more workers from eastern Europe), although it was more the case in the hotel/restaurant sector than with contract catering. Many interviewees made the point that this is not necessarily a new phenomena as other nationalities, such as Philippines and Portuguese, have always worked in the sector - the change over recent years is that the numbers of 'migrant' workers have increased and more are from the new EU states. There was agreement that this trend is a very positive thing, with many of the leaders stating that they could not operate without these workers. In particular, Polish workers were found to have an excellent work ethic and attitude.

What are the implications for hospitality leaders? Issues raised for leaders who have to manage a multi-cultural workforce included: giving appropriate training; encouraging language training; treating people as equals; and having cultural sensitivity.

THEME C - THE INDUSTRY'S REPUTATION

Does the reputation of the hospitality industry put people off joining it?  The view was that the industry was still perceived to be (and , in some cases, still is) a poor working environment with bad conditions of employment, although the respondents felt that this was changing. This perception should be challenged by organisations making sure that their workplaces were good to work in.

How can hospitality leaders influence their industry's reputation?  Leaders should lead by example by ensuring that they not only provided fulfilling jobs, but should also go out of their way to promote the industry. They should work with industry bodies and consider entering initiatives such as The Sunday Times '100 Best Companies to Work In' survey. There was also a strong feeling that leaders could work with schools, career advisors and parents to explain the myths and realities of the industry, and to stress its potential benefits such as excellent career development opportunities and the potential to work overseas.

List of leaders interviewed